Five Towns Real Estate Blog

Have you ever wanted to contact a homeseller and say "Do you really know what your Agent is (or isn't) doing to market your home?"

I so want to do that right now. Just a shory anonymous note (don't want to get fined or anything).

Just want to say...

Dear Homeowner..

I just saw that you listed your house for sale. You have a lovely sign on your front lawn. A customer of mine saw your home on ListingBook the other day and had some questions.

She wanted to know the condition - Your agent only has 5 old photos of the outside of the house.
She asked about the kitchen and baths - I don't know, no pictures.
She asked when she could see it - Again, no idea says no showings until after open house.
She asked when the Open House was - I said, No idea, it is not on the listing.

I did call your agent, left her 2 voice mails, maybe when you speak with her you can ask her to return her phone calls.

Or maybe she is just keeping it quiet so she can sell it herself.

Want to wish you luck with your sale, and when you expire and are ready to really sell it - I'll be in touch!!

Signed
Anonymous

Agents who do things like this frustrate me. She is not a new agent, but she does this on ALL her listings. Guess she just wants to get both sides of everything. She has incomplete/incorrect listings, and if you do want to show one of her properties she makes you jump through hoops to do it.

She is the opposite of everything that I try to be and it just gets me angry when people list with people like her.

I put up the maximum number of pictures on MLS
I make sure to have complete ACCURATE information
Homes are displayed throughout the internet
Brokers and public Open Houses are scheduled and advertising.
I tend to get my listings written up in the local newspapers.

My job is to SELL your home I SELL houses, I don't collect them. If you have a customer, please show my homes.

Thanks for letting me vent, now maybe my head won't explode.

It became official at last nights meeting. An Eruv has been approved which will encompass all of Woodsburgh.

For those of you not familiar with the area, Woodsburgh is an incorporated village in the Five Towns area of Long Island. It is conveniently located 15 minutes from JFK airport, 40 minutes from NYC, walking distance to the LIRR.

The Eruv is scheduled too be in place by the end of the year.

If this has been keeping you on the fence in terms of buying or selling - no need to wait any longer.

Let me know how I can help you.

Existing-Home Sales Record Another Big Gain, Inventories Continue to Shrink

Washington, November 23, 2009

Driven by the first-time buyer tax credit, existing-home sales showed another big gain in October with a strong uptrend established over the past seven months, while inventories continue to decline, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

Existing-home sales - including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops - surged 10.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate¹ of 6.10 million units in October from a downwardly revised pace of 5.54 million in September, and are 23.5 percent above the 4.94 million-unit level in October 2008. Sales activity is at the highest pace since February 2007 when it hit 6.55 million.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, was surprised at the size of the gain. "Many buyers have been rushing to beat the deadline for the first-time buyer tax credit that was scheduled to expire at the end of this month, and similarly robust sales may be occurring in November," he said. "With such a sale spike, a measurable decline should be anticipated in December and early next year before another surge in spring and early summer."

Now that the tax credit has been extended and expanded, potential buyers have until April 30 to have a contract in place. "There is still a large pent-up demand that can be tapped before the tax credit expires. Our recent consumer survey further shows that 13 percent of successful first-time buyers had a previous contract that was cancelled or fell through - there likely are many more buyers who were attempting to purchase but simply ran out of time," Yun said.

Historically low interest rates also are boosting the market. "Mortgage interest rates last month were the third lowest on record dating back to 1971," Yun noted. According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.95 percent in October from 5.06 percent in September; the rate was 6.20 percent in October 2008. Last week, Freddie Mac reporter the 30-year rate dropped to 4.83 percent.

NAR President Vicki Cox Golder, owner of Vicki L. Cox & Associates in Tucson, Ariz., said strong demand by first-time buyers is creating some unusual conditions. "In parts of the country, especially in Southwestern states but also in Florida and suburban Washington, D.C., we've been getting many reports of multiple bids in the lower price ranges with foreclosed properties getting absorbed quickly," she said.

"In fact, low-end inventory has become very tight in many areas and in some cases buyers are becoming more aggressive. In this kind of environment it's important to work with a Realtor® who can walk you through the process and help you negotiate a satisfactory deal," Golder said.

Total housing inventory at the end of October fell 3.7 percent to 3.57 million existing homes available for sale, which represents a 7.0-month supply² at the current sales pace, down from an 8.0-month supply in September. Unsold inventory totals are 14.9 percent below a year ago.

"The supply of homes on the market is now at the lowest level in over two-and-a half years - we're getting closer to a general balance between buyers and sellers," Yun said. The last time the relative housing inventory was this low was in February 2007 when it also was at a 7.0-month supply.

The national median existing-home price³ for all housing types was $173,100 in October, down 7.1 percent from October 2008. Distressed properties, which accounted for 30 percent of sales in October, continue to downwardly distort the median price because they usually sell at a discount relative to traditional homes in the same area.

"In the second half of 2010, if home values show consistent stabilization or even a modest increase, then home sales could remain at normal healthy levels because consumers would no longer be worried about a price overcorrection," Yun said.

He added that low home prices also are contributing to extremely favorable affordability conditions. "With the abnormal drop in home prices over the past few years, the price-to-income ratio has fallen below the historic trend line," Yun said. "This is adding to the buying power of the typical family, with affordability conditions this year at the highest on record dating back to 1970, but prices are beginning to flatten and are poised to rise next year."

Single-family home sales rose 9.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.33 million in October from a pace of 4.86 million in September, and are 21.4 percent above the 4.39 million-unit pace in October 2008. The median existing single-family home price was $173,100 in October, down 6.8 percent from a year ago.

Existing condominium and co-op sales surged 13.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 770,000 units in October from 680,000 in September, and are 40.8 percent above the 547,000-unit level a year ago. The median existing condo price⁴ was $172,900 in October, which is 10.4 percent below October 2008.

Regionally, existing-home sales in the Northeast rose 11.6 percent to an annual level of 1.06 million in October, and are 27.7 percent higher than October 2008. The median price in the Northeast was $235,400, down 2.6 percent from a year ago.

Existing-home sales in the Midwest surged 14.4 percent in October to a pace of 1.43 million and are 28.8 percent above a year ago. The median price in the Midwest was $146,600, a gain of 1.1 percent from October 2008.

In the South, existing-home sales rose 12.7 percent to an annual level of 2.30 million in October and are 25.7 percent higher than October 2008. The median price in the South was $151,100, down 6.3 percent from a year ago.

Existing-home sales in the West increased 1.6 percent to an annual rate of 1.31 million in October and are 12.0 percent above a year ago. The median price in the West was $220,200, which is 14.7 percent below October 2008.

The National Association of Realtors®, "The Voice for Real Estate," is America's largest trade association, representing 1.2 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

Just reported by the Associated Press:

"The legislation would extend the $8,000 tax credit through June of next year as long as the buyer enters into a binding contract before April 30. It doubles the income ceiling for qualification to $125,000 for individuals. The credit is available for homes purchased at under $800,000.

The measure also strengthens the ability of the IRS to stop people who are not eligible for the program from filing fraudulent claims.

The new $6,500 credit for existing homeowners, said Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., a cosponsor of the measure, "is going to help us boost what is the problem in the U.S. housing market today and that is what is called the move-up market."

Now back to the House then to Obama to sign it.

Looking to buy ir sell? The time is stil NOW. The Five Towns is our specialty - let us tell you how we are different from the rest.

Do you want to search the Multiple Listing Service (MLSLI) for homes on Long Island for free?  Would you like to know all the homes for sale in Woodmere, Hewlett, Cedarhurst, North Woodmere, Valley Stream, Lynbrook and the surrounding towns that fit your personal criteria?  You can do it, and with no hassle, no driving around, no wasting you hard earned money on gas, no searching all over the internet and no calling every agent in the book for information. 

Do you want to sit at home and have a list of all available homes delivered right to your computer every morning?  It's easy and it won't cost you a dime. The best of all the Real Estate websites combined into one easy to use resource.

Well, You Can!  I can set you up with a FREE Listingbook account. My clients call it MLSLI on steroids. All your desired Real Estate information. All in one convenient location. All tailored specifically for you!!!

Listingbook is an interactive program that you would benefit from. With this program you will get daily emails of homes that you are interested in, you will be able to change the criteria you are looking for (such as price, # bedrooms, # baths, style of home, etc.), map the home, see the taxes, jot me a note from the listing, etc. You will have your own account and password and, since the information is updated every few minutes, there will be times you have the information before I do!

Interested? Just contact me and I will set up your account in minutes.

As Sy Syms says " An Educated Consumer is our best customer". Be the best educated home buyer you can be.

I am here to answer all your Real Estate related needs in the Five Towns of Lawrence, Hewlett, Woodmere, Cedarhurst and Inwood as well as the surrounding areas of North Woodmere, Valley Stream, Lynbrook and East Rockaway.